Chapter Thirty-Five - Leigh
It’s ironic.
The prison cells beneath the castle—the same ones that once held rebels and political prisoners during my ancestors’ reign—now only hold a single occupant: me.
What was meant to break the spirits of many now targets only my isolation.
The dungeons should be haunted after centuries of suffering, yet even the ghosts seem to have abandoned this place, leaving me in a silence so complete it becomes its own form of torture.
I researched this realm to rescue Aradia and came here for Fynn.
I succeeded in saving one but failed with the other.
Fynn was never here. The little boy might have been taken from his bed by one of the Dullahan, but he was never dragged beneath the lake’s surface or brought into this gray scale realm of the dead.
He was just bait—bait I swallowed whole.
Is the prophecy true? If it is, without me, the peace I have fought so hard to achieve will crumble into dust. My people will suffer, and everything will be worse than ever.
I pushed Wilder away.
I sold my soul.
Now look at me. Trapped, soulless, and alone.
“Hey.” I rattle the bars of my cage. “How can I trust your word that Aradia is safe if I don’t get to talk to her?”
No one answers. Fucking figures.
Trembling, I slowly lower myself to the damp, stone floor.
I hug my knees to my chest; my corseted undergarments provide little warmth against the iron-cold surroundings after shedding my borrowed gown.
The situation I’m in closely mirrors when Chiron locked me in that vault several years ago.
The same claustrophobic walls closing in, the same helplessness tearing at my throat.
Only this time, no one is here to save me.
Kosac got what he wanted. I’m stuck like a fly in amber, forever trapped in my mistake.
More seconds tick by. I play with the fabric of my silk slip, the fine material now torn and soiled—the perfect metaphor for my ruined plans.
This cannot be my future. I need to escape and ensure that the prophecy—true or not—doesn’t fall apart without me.
The bars are reinforced steel, hard and unyielding. The keys hang tantalizingly out of reach, placed there by one of Kosac’s cronies, who had locked me in here earlier.
The Dullahan can leave this realm, and so can the daemons. If I can escape this cell, there’s a chance I can go as well. I’m not a ghost. If I can break free from this world, I can help Ravi seal it. I’ll confront Kosac after my death.
“Leigh?”
I sit straighter.
“Leigh?”
My heart rate increases. It can’t be. “Aradia?”
“Where are you?” Aradia calls.
I push to my feet, ignoring the whine of my tired muscles. I stick one hand between the bars, waving her down.
“I’m here!”
Aradia appears before me, and I can hardly believe my eyes. She looks so real, with her dark hair tied back and her light eyes full of life. Her cheeks have color, and tears prick my eyes.
I did that. Although I may be trapped here, seeing her vitality restored makes part of my hasty decision worthwhile.
“Leigh, what the devil did you do?” Aradia asks.
My hands fall to my sides.
“I wanted to help you,” I say, though it justifies nothing. I’m a fool.
She frowns. “By trading your soul for mine? Do you have any idea the damage you’ve done?”
“I have an idea … Are you going to Heaven?”
“Yes.” Aradia sighs. “But you should have left everything alone.”
“I did it to help you. It’s my fault you’re here. If I had crossed you over—”
“No, I am here on my own volition because I was afraid. Afraid that, despite helping you right the wrongs of my life, it would still not be enough to undo the evil I let persist during my reign. I was scared I’d end up in Hell, but all that got me is a one-way ticket to limbo, which is a hell in and of itself. ”
“See, that’s why I couldn’t leave you here.” Aradia’s the reason the world found peace.
She raises a thin brow. “So, it’s better you were stuck here instead of me?”
I say nothing, staring at the ground.
“Stop prioritizing others over yourself, Leigh. I know that as a queen, you must be dedicated to your people, but it’s essential to take care of yourself first.”
I can’t meet her eyes. She’s right.
“I didn’t want to tell you about the prophecy because I couldn’t handle seeing that pressure land on your shoulders.
But I can see now that you thought your joy didn’t matter when, in fact, it does.
You were chosen to finally undo my mistakes and lead our people to peace.
You deserved to know. Maybe if you did, you wouldn’t be imprisoned here. ”
Emotion clogs my throat. “I’m sorry.”
“Even without the prophecy, your life is just as valuable as mine or anyone else’s. If you spend your whole life trying to keep everyone else happy, you’ll end up failing them all. You need to pursue your own happiness as well.”
I nod, but she frowns at me. “Use your words. Tell me you understand, because I don’t have much time left.”
“I understand,” I say, and I genuinely mean it.
I always put others first. I pushed Wilder away to protect him and traded my soul to free Aradia.
By doing these things, I saved the people I love, but now I’m empty inside.
Selflessness isn’t the same as sacrifice; there’s a middle ground I have refused to acknowledge.
Aradia smiles. “Good.”
“What does it feel like?” As I ask, her form flickers, like a light about to go out.
“Like open arms welcoming me home.”
“I’m glad,” I say a tad breathlessly.
“I will beseech the gods for your release from this place,” she vows. “I promise—”
She disappears.
The prophecy was real. My people will suffer if I stay here. I’m getting out.
“Let me the fuck out,” I scream, my voice echoing. “Kosac, I know damn well you can hear me.”
He’s probably watching me now, enjoying the show, like how he watched me push Wilder away at the river. He’s the eyes and ears of this realm. It probably amuses him that I’m trapped. He has my soul, my future happiness, and all to spite the gods who spited him. Fuck him.
“Kos—”
“Leigh!” Wilder’s voice cuts through my rage like scissors through silk.
I freeze. Unable to believe my ears. Wilder didn’t leave.
“Leigh. Answer me.”
Hope flutters in my chest. “Wilder.”
“Where are you?” he calls.
I grip the bars tighter. After I tore him down and pushed him away, he came back for me. He shouldn’t be here. This realm is destroying him, and I shouldn’t be glad he’s here, but gods, I am.
I love him deeply, and I never want to be apart again.
“Here!” I press against the bars, straining to see him through the shadows.
Moments later, he’s standing in front of me with the thick bars between us where Aradia previously stood. His clothes are wet, his hair glued to his unnaturally pale skin, water dripping from his chin. Pain and doubt shine from his eyes. Emotions I put there. Seeing him takes my breath away.
“I’m so sorry,” I say, the words tumbling out in a rush.
He shakes his head, eyes scanning the cell. “Later.”
“I didn’t mean what I said.” I keep going despite his protests.
He’s sizing up the bars, not meeting my gaze, his hands testing the lock’s strength.
“I said those things to get you to go home. You don’t belong here.
Mictlan is killing you. I wanted to save you.
And I do want to marry you. It’s the only thing that has brought me joy throughout this entire ordeal. ”
Wilder’s hands wrap around the metal. “Say that last part again.”
His grin is contagious. “I want to marry you.”
“Then let’s go get fucking married.”
He makes it sound simple and inevitable.
My smile falters. “Last I checked, I am a prisoner.” I tap the bars between us with a fingernail, the slight clink underscoring my point.
“Easily remedied,” a female voice answers.
A face I didn’t think I’d see again materializes from the shadows. Selene looks the same as she did when I last saw her alive. Her long purple hair catches what little light filters into the dungeon, creating a halo effect. I clutch my chest.
“Selene?”
Selene puts a hand on her hip, striking a pose that’s so painfully familiar it hurts. “In the flesh.” Hesitation flickers across her face, followed by a rueful smile. “Well, sort of. I don’t really know what we are, but we aren’t alive.”
I laugh through my tears. Selene is here. Taken too soon because of my cowardice three years ago. I’ve changed; I’ve learned from my mistakes. “I can’t believe it’s you. Pallas will never—”
“We need to hurry,” Wilder tells me. To Selene, he asks, “Did you grab them?”
Selene lifts an old-fashioned key ring into the air.
Wilder takes the keys from her and sticks the largest one into the lock. It turns with a whine of ancient metal. The iron doorway opens. Wilder rushes inside the cell. I throw my arms around him with enough force to nearly knock him backward.
I breathe him in, not caring that he’s sopping wet. I cling to him as if he were my salvation. He is.
“I’m sorry,” we say simultaneously, then laugh.
Wilder pulls back just enough to meet my gaze, his hands still holding me close. I smile up at him as if he were the sun. He’s the most vibrant thing in this entire realm. So beautiful. So perfect. So mine.
“We need to hurry,” I say. “Ravi needs to close the rift.”
“Kosac opened the rift, not you,” Wilder replies, causing me to trip.
Kosac opened the rift? That means I’ve been blaming myself for something that wasn’t my fault in the first place. But if he opened the rift, does that mean he can keep doing it to reach me?
“It took an enormous amount of power,” Selene comments, as if she’s reading my thoughts. “If he tries again, it will only weaken him further.”
I nod. If he tries again, we’ll know how to stop him. At least that’s what I tell myself as I pull Wilder out of my cell.
“You think you can run in those?” His eyes drop to the satin slippers on my feet.
“I have a wedding to get to.”
We move swiftly through the castle, choosing speed over stealth.
Soon, we’re exiting through a servants’ entrance. The damp air hits my skin, chilly but welcome after the stale prison. We traipse across the wet grass toward the forest.
No one stops us. No alarms sound. It’s nearly too good to be—
A loud horn blares, the powerful sound sending goose bumps over my skin. The earth vibrates a moment later. I look at Wilder, my heart lodging in my throat. He looks at Selene.
“Hoofbeats,” Wilder says.
“Dullahan,” Selene confirms. “All of them.”
“Run.”
I drag Wilder toward the forest. We’re running for our lives now.
The trees loom ahead, offering potential cover.
Behind us, the hoofbeats grow louder—a murderous rhythm that matches the pounding in my chest. If the Dullahan catch us, we’re all doomed.
My soul already belongs to Kosac. What will he do to Wilder and Selene for helping me?
The air burns in my lungs as we sprint, but I don’t slow down. I can’t slow down. Freedom is ahead, and death rides at our backs.